Antoine Cason, 2008 NFL Draft Prospect
 | Cornerback Height: 6' 0" Weight: 191 lbs. Speed: 4.48 20 yard shuttle: 4.08 Strengths: Ball Skills, Toughness, Tackling Weaknesses: Speed, Size Pro Comparison: Ty Law Arizona Senior Scouting report by Daryl Breault |
Confidence is one of the most important traits in a cornerback, and Arizona corner Antoine Cason has that in spades. The 2007 Thorpe Award winner started his very first college game at Arizona as a true freshman and never looked back. He was so good in his first season that teams were already throwing away from him by his sophomore year. Cason has been one of the best players in the Pac-10 over the last 4 years but hasn’t gotten the publicity of some other corners because he plays out of the limelight in Arizona. He finished his career with 253 tackles, 14 TFL and 15 INT. Cason has been bestowed with title of ‘true shutdown corner’ by scouts due to his complete game.
Cason is a very accomplished tackler for a corner, he hits hard and loves to stick his nose into the action against the run. As he was usually the Cats best defensive player Cason was rarely tested by quarterbacks, so for him to post over 250 tackles is an excellent barometer of his willingness to support the run. One of the things I love about Cason is his aggressiveness, against the run and with receivers. Though Cason is not a big corner, he is quite strong and is willing to get physical with a receiver, move him off his route or muscle him off the ball.
Cason’s ball skills are what make him truly special. His numbers don’t jump out at you but you can’t discount how much teams stayed away from him. Cason has been the best player on that team for 4 years with no one who was able to force teams to account for. When you are head and shoulders above your teammates, it’s easy to be kept out of the action. Teams rarely tested Cason or threw to his side of the field, as well as having receivers run ‘dummy’ routes designed have Cason running as far from the action as possible. He still managed 32 pass break-ups over his career, including a career high 14 and 5 INT in 2007.
Cason will be an elite bump-and-run corner very quickly if he bulks up and adds strength. While he doesn’t boast elite speed, he has outstanding quickness and long strides that allow him to keep up with receivers that are faster than he is. Cason should test in the high 4.4/40 area. He gets great height on his jumps and is adept at timing his jumps correctly and taking the ball away from receivers. He is quite athletic and won’t have as much trouble with bigger receivers as his size would suggest. Arizona recognized his abilities with the ball in his hands and Cason has become an accomplished punt returner. That alone will get him on the field quickly.
Teams are always on the lookout for corners due to how many 3 and 4 wideout sets are utilized now. There are few number one corners in this league right now and Cason has the potential to be just that. I fully believe Cason will be on the field from day 1, as a nickel back at first before moving into the starting line up. He has the proper mindset to start at nickel back, where a certain temperament is needed to succeed. Cason’s ball skills are just too strong for him to not make an impact in his rookie season.
Miami is in dire straights in their secondary, while St. Louis needs another corner next to Tye Hill, but that may be too high for him. Kansas City is relying on vets Ty Law and Patrick Surtain who are almost finished but have so many needs that it’s hard to figure where they’ll go. I would not be surprised to see Cason get selected by New England at number 7 too replace Asante Samuel. Cason and Samuel are similar players and I don’t see Brandon Meriweather playing corner. In my personal opinion Cason is the top cornerback available this year and could hear his name called in the first 20 picks.
Update: Cason had a better than expected workout at the NFL Scouting Combine and he might have snuck back into the first round. His 4.48 forty was not blazing fast, but it is fast enough to be a quality starter in the NFL, he displayed excellent quickness and had one of the fastest 20 yard shuttle runs at 4.08 seconds.